Hero's Debt
by Glimare
Summary: Two Shot: She saw it all. Wayne's shot. Grayson's kidnapped. A ransom's been made. Batman isn't picking up and time's running out. Desperate she calls Wally. Can the two of them save the kid before a coin toss decides his fate?
1. Chapter 1

** Disclaimer:** Oh though great DC nation we all love and adore, please do not strike a lowly fan such as I for writing such a story. I take no money for it, and put no claim on your wonderful world. Hire me if you will, but I shant take credit for your awesomeness.

Some language, more than I'd normally write, but all of it's within character, else wouldn't have it.

Oh, FYI, this piece makes references to earlier fanfics of mine, particularly 'Hostages' and 'Bird-sitting', plus a very vague reverence to 'Kids' via mindset of people in and/or around the league in reference to Robin. You can get away without reading most of mine, but I do recommend 'Hostages'. This really is a follow up on it.

* * *

><p>Hero's Debt<p>

School had just ended for the day, and like everyone else, Artemis rushed into the hallway. Unfortunately, this time she wasn't fast enough to get out the door first. Besides, she had to get the last of her homework out of her locker. Being on a superhero team didn't exempt her from normal high school activities.

As she slammed her locker shut, she spotted Bette Kane flirting with the lead quarterback. 'Even she's getting a hot boyfriend,' Artemis thought in envy. Realizing the truth about M'gann and Conner still stung, despite the time since the discovery. Wally was still in denial, and truthfully she couldn't bring her self to talk to M'gann about it. It hurt seeing the two of them together like that, but she didn't know which hurt her more: the fact that they were together or that M'gann hadn't told her about their relationship directly. They were BFFs, weren't they?

'_Gah, if Robin wasn't still a kid, I'd go after him!_' Frustrated, Artemis hit her head against her locker then turned around to lean against it. Robin was cute, he had potential, but really he wasn't her type. Way too immature and had a daddy complex for certain. '_Man that kid's lucky to have Batman as a dad. Much better than my evil idiot one._'

Irked at herself for thinking about her old man, she screwed up her courage and proceeded to exit the school. She tried to ignore the couples around her, even the ones that didn't exist. '_I need to get a guy._'

As she exited the school, she spotted her bus leaving its stop. "Hey wait—Ah crap. Just what I need." Glaring at the ground, she proceeded toward the stop, if only to occupy her time. It'd be twenty minutes until another bus came, at least one headed in the direction she wanted. May as well wait and get her homework done.

As she crossed the street to her bench, Artemis spotted a squad car coming up to the school. She rolled her eyes briefly as the commissioner stepped out of one side and cheerfully met his daughter outside the school gates. They hugged in greeting, but that wasn't why Artemis wanted to groan. Ever since the hold up last month, the commissioner and several other parents picked up their kids with more protection than necessary. Barbra Gordon may have been used to seeing squad cars, but Bette was being picked up in one of three hummers.

'_At least Grayson still has his freedom._' Idly she looked across the street, spotting the boy billionaire slipping into a coffee shop. Despite claims that Bruce Wayne was paranoid and a bit protective over his ward, he didn't stop Dick from having his fun. Dick stayed within eyesight of the school gates and Artemis was certain his phone was in hand in case he needed it, but other than that he seemed to act like any other teenager without a care in the world. Wayne still picked him up (often late) but in a nice car, not something the military would use. Man that kid was lucky.

Artemis took out one of her textbooks and started doing her assignment, pushing everything but the next bus from her mind. She looked up briefly when a Lexis buzzed past her and then a second time when she heard tingling of the coffee shop's door. Neither would have mattered to her if it weren't for the black SUV jolting past her.

It slammed to a stop and both side doors slid open with a snap, attracting Artemis' gaze. She saw the back of the van and realized it had no plates before she heard the gun fire. People screamed behind her field of vision and she dived to the side to avoid all possibility of being shot. She kept the van in view though, then gaped in horror at what was happening on the other side of the SUV.

Dick Grayson's cup and iPhone crashed to the ground as three men covered in black grabbed him and dragged him into the van. One had a rag over Dick's mouth and nose, but the crazy kid kept writhing and fighting for all he was worth. He was still struggling when the three men had him in their getaway vehicle.

And just as sudden as this scene started, it stopped. The men pulled back in their weapons and both doors slammed shut. The black SUV jolted into drive and left them all in the dust.

Artemis slowly pushed herself off the ground and to her knees, looking around best she could. She dreaded looking behind herself but did anyway. She closed her eyes, pained by what she saw.

"Call an ambulance!" Commissioner Gordon told his junior officer as he ran to a fallen man's side. An older gentleman also tried to help the large man. Several other people were injured, mostly in the arm or leg, but this man had to be the main target.

Bruce Wayne clutched his leg in pain, though it looked like he was shot in the chest a few times. But this was a paranoid man. Underneath his regular suit and tie, a Kevlar vest rested over his vital regions. He was lucky he was prepared. Still, what shocked everyone more was what came out of his mouth.

"Where's Dick?"

The chauffer looked around, alarms sounding in his head. Gordon didn't look but instead ripped off Wayne's tie to use it to stop the bleeding. "We'll find him in a minute. Right now you need medical attention. Where's the school nurse?"

"I'll get him." Barbra ran as fast as she could into the school to get help, passing several more injured. The patrolman left his car, dragging out the medical kit as he raced to his boss's side.

"Why aren't you going after the van?" Wayne demanded, struggling against the officers trying to help him.

"I called it in," the patrolman started, unsure himself. "Montoya said she was in route."

"You should have gone after them!"

"Wayne calm down!" Gordon shoved Bruce back to the ground, securing the makeshift bandages best he could. "You'll lose your—"

"I don't care about my damn leg! You need to—"

"Master Bruce! Nothing will be solved if you do not receive medical treatment!" The three men looked up in shocked surprise at the chauffer. The stern glare on the old man's face seemed to rein Bruce's fury instantly. "I will find Master Richard. You focus on your leg, and take all medical advice given to you. These men are just trying to do their jobs."

Wayne seemed to bite back everything he was about to say before. "Right Alfred. Of course. Please find Dick."

"Naturally." With that, Alfred darted towards the coffee shop just as Barbra and the school nurse came out of the building. He crossed the street and spotted Artemis staring at a cell phone and coffee cup on the ground. He instantly recognized it then grabbed the girl by her shoulders. "Did you see what happened? Did you see a young man come out of this shop?"

Dumbly Artemis nodded, horrified and filled with self loathing for doing nothing. "They took him. They took Dick Grayson, three of them, and stuffed him in the van. They covered his face. He fought back but it was three of them. The gunfire didn't stop until they had him. No plates."

Alfred's face lost what color it had left but he retained his composure. Gently he let go of her then placed a hand on her back, guiding her to the Commissioner. The sirens of ambulances were coming closer, and this girl was a key witness. "Please come this way miss. I'm certain the police will want to hear everything you know."

* * *

><p>Artemis couldn't stand it. She couldn't stand being helpless. She couldn't stand not trying to stop them earlier from kidnapping the kid. She couldn't stand telling the commissioner and his daughter what happened. She felt like she deserved it when Barbra yelled at her for doing nothing. She didn't want the Commissioner to defend her. She knew she couldn't take telling Bruce Wayne what happened, especially when he tried to jump out of his hospital bed for the fiftieth time to look for his ward. The look on his face though was the worse. He didn't blame her, she could tell that much, but the pain of not knowing what was happening to the kid—his son—was killing him inside. If her own pain and shame for not doing anything during this attack wasn't so overwhelming, she'd have felt envy watching him fight to leave the hospital to save the boy he loved so much.<p>

Bruce Wayne had to be heavily sedated to keep him there overnight, and his butler seemed to have mixed feelings about it. Vaguely Artemis heard how "Master Bruce" would hate them all in the morning for this, but it was necessary for the recovery of both boys. Artemis found it a little funny that this Alfred referred to both Dick and Bruce as boys, and that he took full control of the situation once his employer's back was turned.

Artemis stayed around the cops and butler in the hospital for a while, trying to hear everything she could about the case. The black SUV had no plates and the brand name was ripped off so she couldn't ID it that way. Pursuing officers lost it after an intense fifteen minute car chase, and was found again an hour later, dumped at a factory thirty minutes away. It was clean of prints but a note was found along with a double sided coin.

**2.2 million dollars cash**

**non-sequential bills**

**24 hours from shooting**

**in front of the kid's coffee shop**

**or Wayne loses an heir**

"It's gotta be Two-Face," Barbra interjected before one of the detectives pushed her out the door. Artemis had to agree. A double sided coin and using 'two' in ransom demands was just like that demented monster. This was a job for Batman. Only he and Robin could solve this case without any casualties. She half expected to see a pieces of Batman's cape or to be interviewed by Robin as a key witness by now, but nothing happened. It was nearly three hours, three precious hours, since the shooting/kidnapping and there wasn't a sign of the dynamic duo.

'_Where are they? Are they already on the case?_' Artemis hoped that was the case, but you'd think they'd check the facts first, wouldn't they? Unable to wait for them a second longer, Artemis left her seat in the hallway and searched her bag for a communicator. She pulled into a bathroom, checked it was empty, then took a stall to make a private call. She put the earpiece in and tapped it to activate.

"Artemis to Robin, come in Robin." She kept her voice low just in case someone came in. On the other end was nothing. Not static or even a busy signal. "Robin, come in please!"

Nothing.

Frustrated, she tried another approach. "Artemis to Batman. Come in please! I have vital information on the Grayson kidnapping."

No response.

"Where are they?" She gripped her head in frustration. She couldn't sit still like this. Grayson, she owed her life to him. He stepped between her and a gun last month. Only her team would have done the same. She stopped to realize she owed Mr. Wayne too. He gave her the scholarship to go to Gotham Academy. She was there when Dick was taken and did nothing. She owed it to them both.

She had to do something.

Determination took control over her as she left the bathroom and tapped her communicator again. Vaguely she heard the butler telling the police the ransom could be met within that amount of time, but it was likely whether Dick lived or died depended on a coin toss.

"Wally. Come in Wally."

"Wally here! Whazzup beautiful?"

"It's Artemis." She tried not to smirk as she heard Wally cough up whatever he was eating. He obviously didn't realize which girl was calling him. "I need you in Gotham, now. We've got a case."

"Whoa whoa, wait, Gotham? What are you doing there? That Batman and Rob's territory, and they're pretty territorial."

"I can't get in contact with them and I witnessed the crime just three hours ago." Artemis gripped her bag tightly as she rushed out of the hospital. It wasn't far from her place thankfully. She could run there, change into her gear and be at the Zeta-beam exit within twenty minutes.

"That's a lot of help." Wally was purposely being difficult. He popped a chip into his mouth. "What's the crime? And why didn't you just call Rob? Why are you in Gotham anyway?"

"I tried calling Robin first! He's not picking up." She gripped her bag tightly as she started running down Gotham streets to home. None of them were even or safe in the evening. "Look I wouldn't call you if I wasn't desperate, but I think you're the only one who can help. It's a kidnapping, and I'm not sure how to hunt the bad guys down."

That seemed to get Wally's attention. "Who?"

"Two-face."

"No, who was taken?"

"Dick Grayson, Bruce Wayne's ward. Wayne's been shot and sedated too. That's how they got the kid. They shot people on one side of the van and took the kid through the other."

"Man that's sick." Wally's tone became serious and Artemis could hear him moving quickly around his house. "Rob told me Two-face favored two part plans and was brutal, but I didn't think he'd be much of a kidnapper."

"He does it on occasion, but very rarely is it a kid in broad daylight." She turned into an alleyway and leapt from trashcan to low wall, hopping over it and landing with an 'ugh' on the other side. Her apartment building was nearly in sight. "There's a Zeta-beam site not far from me. Point 2469. I use it to visit my cousin. I'll see you there in fifteen minutes."

"I'll try to call Robin. Maybe he'll pick up."

"Do that. Artemis over and out." She tapped her earpiece once then glared in determination, dashing through her building's doors. Fifteen minutes. The kid already waited three hours. He'd only have to wait fifteen more before help would come his way. She only prayed it'd be enough.

* * *

><p>Kid Flash surveyed the crime scene best he could without being spotted by the Gotham PD. Sure they were used to vigilantes looking over their work, but nothing quite as brightly colored as Kid Flash. Artemis hung back in the shadows, feeling again the trauma of watching that day's events. To keep her mind off of her feelings, she asked KF if he managed to get Robin.<p>

KF shook his head, frustrated. "He usually picks up unless he's babysitting or at school. All I got was a dial tone. I think his phone's broken."

"Robin baby-sits?" Artemis took a step back in surprise. The boy wonder, one of the most liked and revered members of the superhero community, baby-sits?

KF chuckled. "Yeah, apparently. A neighbor of his and Bats insists. Kinda funny, but he seems to like it." After a minute, he walked back to Artemis. He shook his head. "The place is picked clean. The tire tracks are common and the cops got all the shell casings. The only thing I can say is that your vict likes lots of cinnamon and sugar in his coffee. How old is he?"

"Um, thirteen I think." She looked away trying to think of what to do next. "I think I heard the cops say the SUV was ditched about thirty minutes away from here."

"So the cars a dead end."

"Ransom note in the car with a double sided coin is what I heard. Hence Two-face." She looked over KF, hoping he'd have all the answers. "So where do we go from here?"

Kid Flash gripped his chin thinking. Thanks to his experience with his Uncle, the forensics officer, detective, and Flash of Central City, he knew more about investigations than most kids his age. Robin could best him in probably half of it, but Wally had more of a scientific mind. He was the one who knew how to make an EMP wave, not Rob. Rob was more tactics and computers. This part of the investigation is where the two of them would be equals.

"Well if it's Two-face, we should look into him. Find out what he's been up to and where he's hiding these days. Maybe if we got Batman—"

"I couldn't get him," Artemis reiterated. "I'm pretty sure we're on our own for this one."

"What about your uncle?"

Artemis took a mental step back, realizing Green Arrow might be able to get a hold on Batman but at the same time no one trespassed on Batman's territory. She really didn't want to bring him in on this. This was her fight, her debt to pay. Instead of talking about her 'uncle', Artemis turned the tables on KF. "What about your uncle? Did you tell him where you were going tonight?"

Kid Flash didn't say anything for a moment, then rubbed his head awkwardly. "Point. Alright then, no league today. But if the time limit reaches ten hours, we're calling them in. A kid's life is on the line."

Artemis nodded. That gave them ten of their own and even a way to ensure the kid's safety. Ten hours. Could they manage it in ten hours? '_If the Gotham PD can't and we can't, I sure hope the league can._'

"The fact we can't call Robin or Batman kinda scares me though." KF scrunched his eyebrows in thought. "Why would they ignore us? Especially for a case in their city?"

"We can ask them later." Artemis thought over what they knew and decided to throw out ideas. "Okay, we know Two-face is behind this. And he has thugs to help him so… we need to find where he hired them, right?"

"Good place to start." A smile started on KF's face. "In Central, Flash goes to a rouge bar to shake up some information. Know any place like that around here? I mean you visit this place a lot more than I do."

Suddenly Artemis was grateful for her imaginary cousin. The perfect excuse for knowing anything about Gotham. She looked down thinking for a bit. Her dad did go to a bar on occasion. A few of them in fact. Which one would Two-face go to?

Then it hit her. "Double Dare."

"Huh?"

"It's a bar near the harbor, the bad part of the harbor that is. About ten miles from here."

"Alright, let's go then." Without asking, Kid Flash picked up Artemis and started running.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Artemis hit his head enraged. "YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW WHICH WAY YOU'RE GOING!"

"Good point. Lead me, unless you want to waste more time."

Artemis grimaced, knowing he was right. She looked around briefly, gathering her bearings before pointing a direction. "Turn left here, then right after two blocks."

"Roger."

* * *

><p>He must have run for twenty minutes taking directions from Artemis every few blocks. Gotham streets whined too much for clear directions, but they managed to find the place quickly enough. They stopped in a nearby alleyway to figure out how to get the information they wanted. Going covert could get them what they wanted, but the possibility of someone knifing them for asking was pretty high. Going in costume would get them shot, they were certain about that. Gotham wasn't a friendly city, particularly in the bad parts where thugs gathered to drink.<p>

"Okay, I really don't want to go in there," KF pressed, "but I'm sure we'd fair better if we went in together at the very least."

"Or we could go for a third option." She pointed to a pair of twins headed to the bar. They didn't seem like the pleasant sort, but twins going to Double Dare had to be connected to Two-face some how.

KF grinned, their thoughts matching for the first time. Within two minutes both men were in their alleyway, pinned to the wall by arrows. To add emphasis that they meant business, KF punched the wall between the two's heads and smiled darkly. The speed of his punch left a hole in the concrete. Artemis kept an arrow notched.

"So boys, heard from Two-face lately?" Artemis gave her best evil smile to the men as she asked. Kid Flash stepped back to watch, giving them intimidating glares. Both had set their costumes to stealth mode, making them scarier than usual.

The two men though were doing their best not to be intimidated. "Nope. Never heard of him. How about you Floyd?"

"Two-face? What kid of name is that? Sounds like a cartoon character to me Earl."

"Look you two," Artemis growled, "I'm not in the mood to be cute tonight. We can play it easy or play hard. You don't want hard."

Both men looked like they were holding back laughs. "Pfft. Please chicky. You're no Batman."

"Too cute to be Batman. No way you could scare us into anyth—watch where you're pointing that thing!"

KF couldn't hide his shock as Artemis pointed her arrow at one of their privates. A cruel smile came back on her lips. "You know what, I'm so much not Batman that I can't remember what kind of arrows these are. Gas, net, grappling, explosive, it gets confusing after a while. But at this distance, I don't think it matters much. Now talk, before you become a eunuch."

She drew back her bow a little further back to make her point. One of them was ready to snap. "Now, where is Two-face keeping Grayson?"

"I… I don't know! Neither of us do!"

"Wrong answer." She drew back her bow fully, ready to fire.

"Wait! Wait! I think he's working out of Club 22 these days! We did a job for him a few weeks ago! Gun running! He had us drop off the guns there!"

"Semi-automatics?" Behind her, KF was reaching for his communicator to ask Kaldur where Club 22 was. Artemis kept her glare on the two miscreants.

He nodded emphatically. "Yeah, ten of them! But that's all I swear!"

Artemis gave them an untrusting glare, then looked over to KF. He nodded briefly, verifying the place's existence and getting it's location at that moment. After one more glare, she slowly lowered her bow. "Fine. KF, let's go."

"What about them?" They started walking out of the alleyway, the men still pinned to the wall. KF wasn't used to scare tactics nor leaving people on walls.

With one swift movement Artemis turned around and shot an arrow at them. It opened into a net, pinning the two of them into place. A smirk grew on her face. "We'll let the cops handle them. They're accomplices to a shooting and kidnapping."

After a moment, KF asked what he was too scared to say around the men. "Were you really gonna take off their…"

Artemis gave him a sneaky grin but said nothing as he picked her up to run again.

'_Note to self: don't get Artemis that mad at me._'

* * *

><p>Club 22 was abandoned like many of the theme villains of Gotham's hideouts. It shut down after it couldn't pay its debts, and those debts were to Rupert Thorne. In fact, the whole block it stood on was empty except for the beggars and junkies. Hard times hit this area worse than others, forcing businesses to either depend on the local mobs or to close down.<p>

It gave Kid Flash the willies. "How can Rob stand this place? Half of Gotham is rundown and filled with scum balls."

"That's why Batman works so well here." Artemis circled the building to see if there were any lights on but found none. "The people are hopeless and the bad guys get scared easily. This isn't a bright city like Central Kid. It's dark and dirty."

"Then why does anyone live here?" KF slid down his goggles to find any heat signatures and only picked up rats. Ick. "All clear."

"Because its home. Because some people feel they can make a bad place good again. Because of the hope Batman and Robin, and Gordon even, give for a brighter future." They found a hole in the boards and slipped inside to search it.

"A brighter future? Here?" KF slipped his goggles back up and turned on the flashlight mode on them.

"You just won't get it." She looked around, particularly at the dust on the ground. There were signs of people in there not too long ago, maybe within the past two days, but none for the past few hours. "Sometimes things are darkest before the dawn. We just have to make the sun come up ourselves. That's what Gothamites believe, and that's why we stay."

"You're right," KF admitted, "I don't get it. Ooo! Food!"

Artemis jerked around to see KF dash to a pile of chip bags. Most of them were open, but crumbs and a few extra chips fell out easily enough. He ate them quickly and searched the rest of the bags for more.

"Why are you eating from the trash?" She gave him an are-you-kidding-me glare before spotting something halfway burned next to the pile.

"Waste not, want not. Hey!" KF objected loudly as Artemis reached for the burnt paper and brought it to the light. "Whazzat?"

"I don't know," she said, scanning the page. She could almost make out words but the ink was wearing away. The format though, "It looks like a shipping manifest. Can't read where to or from, or even what."

"Maybe it has to do with those guns the twins sold them." Kid Flash shuffled through the trash, hoping to find more clues. He too found some burnt papers, each of their ink barely readable. One of them was completely written by hand. "Or not. Look at these."

Artemis looked over his shoulder, trying to read what she could. It was near impossible. "Isn't there some way to transfer the ink onto another piece of paper? A good one? Like on Sherlock Holmes?"

KF grinned. "Yes there is! We just need a few chemicals and we're on our way. Got a lab?"

Artemis gave him a sidelong look at first, then remembered a place. "Does a school count?"

* * *

><p>Gotham North's security was as bad as Artemis remembered it. They easily snuck into the science rooms without anyone the wiser, and no one would disturb them for several more hours. Their self appointed deadline was five hours away, not bad all things considered, but most kidnappings became dangerous after three hours.<p>

Carefully Kid Flash mimicked the ink transporting procedure they saw on Sherlock Holmes and waited for the results to show anxiously. To occupy time, KF asked Artemis how she managed to see the abduction.

Awkwardly she answered, trying to keep the truth hidden best she could. "I was… waiting at a bus stop so I could visit my cousin. It happened right in front of me. The other side was shooting and I wasn't in costume so…"

"Ah, I see. So this is partly guilt then. For not stopping it."

Artemis shifted her feet. "A little."

"And you thought of me after Bats and Rob and not M'gann because…"

"Does it matter?" Of all the things for Wally to bring up right then, did it have to be M'gann? Her mixed emotions about the martian girl still bothered her, and right then Artemis didn't want to think about her. "I called you and obviously it was the right choice. I don't think any of the others could have helped like you have."

KF stared at her in surprise, then smiled appreciatively. He swung his feet beneath him for a bit, then hopped off the table they sat on to check on the papers. Artemis followed him, anxious to leave her old school. "Did it work?"

"Perfectly. Take a look." Kid Flash grinned as he showed her the manifests. Some were gun orders, others were specialty items like the unmarked SUV and a specialized suit. There were also rough drafts for the ransom note and one with a well marked plan written on it. This one was the hardest to read because of how burnt the original was.

"Is that a two?"

"Think so. If I'm reading this right, it says 'Pier' something 'B2'. That sound familiar?" KF looked over to Artemis who looked down in thought. 'B2' fit Two-face perfectly, but pier? What pier? There were a lot of piers!

KF could see her struggling with this so he took a step back and tried to think logically. "Okay, how about a different angle. You're a bad guy. You just kidnapped someone incredibly valuable. You need a place the cops won't find inside 24 hours, a place Batman won't look. What kind of place would it be?"

"Some place abandoned," Artemis started, "a place the neighbors won't fink on you. It'd have to be out of the way or a needle in a haystack. But a pier…"

Her eyes widened as it dawned on her. "The ghost pier!"

"Ghost?"

"It's practically abandoned and the people who do live there are trying to stay under the radar. Harvey Dent used to push for the cops to come down on the place when he was DA."

"And that matters… why?" Obviously Wally didn't learn everything about Gotham's famous crazy theme villains.

"Because Harvey Dent is Two-face! Half his face got burned off and he went nuts."

"Whoa." Kid Flash blinked in pure surprise. "Gotham is really messed up. Where are you going?"

Artemis was already headed out the window, determined to head out immediately. "Pier Warehouse B2, or some other B2 at that pier. You coming?"

"Naturally." He grabbed the papers and rolled them up to fit into one of his snack holes on his wrists. Souvenir.

* * *

><p>It was nearly one am when they made it to the pier and found a building with a weathered B2 on the side. A single light was on and, judging by the heat signatures KF was picking up, a dozen men were waiting inside. One was smaller than the rest, and tied to a chair.<p>

"Wow," KF raised his goggles, amazed. "We really found them all on our own."

"Thought we couldn't?" Artemis looked around for an entry and found just the right sized one for her and to start shooting arrows from. "Okay, we need a plan here."

"Besides calling Batman and telling him what we know?" He gave her a side long look. "We could be screwing things up for them you know."

"Take a look around Wally! Batman's not here and I don't think he's coming." Frustration filled her again. She couldn't sit back much longer. They found Grayson and Two-face. It was time they saved him.

"Just let me check one more time. I don't want to screw this up and end up with a corpse on our hands." Artemis bit back a retort as KF hailed the batcave once again. "Kid Flash to Batman. Batman, are you there? We found Grayson and Two-face and are ready to take them down. Are we good to go?"

"This is so stupid…"

"Um… who are you?" Artemis jerked her head around as a confused KF started talking to someone who wasn't Batman on the other end. "Okay, I get you know Batman and Robin personally but really, can I get Batman now? We've been trying to get in contact with the two for hours and…" He paused for a bit then nodded. "Yeah, we found Grayson. But where is Batman? Where's Rob? He hasn't answered my calls and he never…" He paused again, longer this time, then gave a grim nod. "We're at the Ghost Pier, Building B2. Send them over. We should have him free by then. KF over and out."

"What was that about?"

Kid Flash huffed out, slightly confused. "Apparently it's not a duo, but a trio. They're got some older British guy helping them behind the scenes. He says 'they're both in positions where they can't fight tonight, despite wanting very much to help'. He also said to 'proceed with caution' and that he'll 'send the police over for backup'. We're on our own."

"They can't help?" Artemis couldn't believe her ears. The knights of Gotham couldn't help? What happened to them? Were they hurt? Judging by KF not going ballistic, Robin couldn't have been hurt, could he? But a position where they couldn't even make it to the com-link to tell them what to do had to be bad. "Well that's just peachy."

"Okay, you ready to go?" KF looked at her, a confident smile on his face.

Artemis took out an Arrow and smirked. They already had a plan in their minds. "Bring it."

* * *

><p>She took the shot. Within an instant the whole room was cast into shadow then filled with smoke. The men inside jerked around, bringing their guns to waist level to start firing as needed. Unfortunately KF was faster than they were. Quickly he punched each of the thugs in the gut and took the ammo out of their guns. Artemis slid in the room during the confusion to get to Grayson.<p>

The kid was duct-taped to a chair, his mouth sealed shut and his uniform a mess. Taking a look at his bonds, Artemis could tell he continued to fight these men. The kid was brave. Course she already knew that. Only brave people or complete idiots threw themselves between a person and a gun. And he had, for her.

Now she was going to get him out of there. "Hold still," she muttered in his ear. "We're going to get you out of here."

She could see his outline jerk in surprise at her voice, but she chose not to respond. She only had a few seconds before the smoke cleared. Hopefully by then KF had all the gunmen taken care of. Maybe even Two-face.

Luck wasn't with them in that sense. Before they knew it, a second light turned on, blinding them temporarily, then Two-face appeared, a double barreled gun in one hand and a coin he kept flipping in the other. Ten feet a way, he pointed it at Artemis. "Not another move girl, or you'll be breathing through your back."

Artemis whipped around, aiming her crossbow straight at the man's chest. "Try it," she growled.

"Artemis!"

Kid Flash's voice triggered both their shots, but neither teen was hurt. KF somehow managed to run into both Grayson (still in his chair) and Artemis, dragging both out of Two-face's line of fire. Two-face himself received a bolt in the shoulder. He called out briefly in pain, then wrenched the shaft out.

Off to the side of the room, KF put down both his passengers, huffing out in exhaustion. "You okay?"

Artemis nodded but Grayson still had the gag on and made angry noises towards them. "Oh."

Without a thought KF ripped off Dick's gag, and the boy winced in pain. "Gah, a little less painful would have been nice."

"That's gratitude for ya." KF gave Dick a sizing glare, not impressed by him very much. For some rich brat, he was very well toned.

"Free my hands and I'll take care of the rest," Dick started, keeping his voice level. Artemis could tell this kid was putting up a brave front again. He was sweating bullets in this cold place and his eyes had a wild look in them. Getting kidnapped this time seemed worse than being held hostage a month or so back. As she worked on his wrists, Dick looked around wildly. "Where's Batman?"

"Couldn't make it." KF looked back to the commotion in the room. The men were getting their guns again, ready to kill.

Artemis finally managed to rip off the last of the tape, then stood tall to draw her bow. Dick winced again then started rubbing his wrists, slight horror coming to his face. "Couldn't make it? How couldn't he—"

"Talk later, escape now. There's an exit about twenty feet to your right. Take it. Your dad's worried about you." The kid looked up to her, fear clambering to his face for a moment before he gulped and started working on his legs.

KF darted forward, punching as many bad guys as he could, knocking the air out of them. Artemis gave cover fire, knocking out guns and pinning men to near by objects, giving the kid enough time to free his legs from the chair. It didn't take long and within a minute the kid jolted out of the chair and behind some crates. Instantly Artemis joined the fight, hurting what was left of the men while KF took apart their guns.

In the commotion they lost track of Two-face so Artemis didn't see him come up from behind her, pointing his gun at her head. KF saw it only a moment before the psychopath was about to fire. "Artemis!"

Behind came a loud crash, jolting her around. Two-face fell to the ground unconscious, pieces of a wooden chair falling around him. Dick Grayson came into view when he hit concrete, the remains of the chair in his hands. He breathed heavily, signs of rage on his face as he glared at the man. He looked like he was holding back quite a bit more than he wanted.

Within moments, Grayson straightened and dropped the chair, his breathing getting under control. He looked at the two and tried to smile. "You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that."

"Wow, that was cool," Kid Flash muttered without thinking.

"Yeah…" Artemis breathed out. Twice now this kid saved her, and here she was trying to save him.

* * *

><p>The police arrived about five minutes later, and Gordon practically flew to the kid's side, checking him over. Artemis and Kid Flash hid on another rooftop, watching to make sure everything turned out okay. KF insisted they stick around for the best part but he wouldn't elaborate when she asked what that was.<p>

"You'll just have to wait and see," he insisted, grinning. They watched in anticipation as Gordon asked the kid the standard questions and the kid gave some answers. They didn't want to be known, so they told the kid to say 'Batman and Green Arrow saved me'. He seemed fine lying about that, but he called KF 'Flash Kid' in response. Wally was starting to not like the kid.

Still they waited on the rooftop as the men and psychopath were put into squad cars and prison vans. They waited as a medic checked Grayson over and wrapped a blanket over his shoulders. They watched Gordon put the kid in his car and drove off.

"What the… what happened?" KF gaped at the slowly emptying lot, confused to no end. "Where are they?"

"Where are who? What was supposed to happen?" Artemis gave him a swift annoyed glare. It was nearly two am and she had school in the morning. She needed sleep.

"His parents," he insisted. "They didn't show up. Every time a kid gets kidnapped, his parents show up and—"

"His parents are long dead," Artemis stated flatly. "And his legal guardian is in the hospital, sedated last I heard. Kept trying to go after him."

"Which hospital?"

"Does it matter?" She gave him an odd glare. What did he care? The kid was safe after all. Case closed.

"You wanna see the best part of this or not?" KF gave her a determined glare, forcing Artemis to give a resigned sigh.

"Gotham North General. It's about a mile from the Zeta-point. Not that it matt—WALLY!" Kid Flash picked her up and hung her over his shoulder within a few seconds, then ran faster than before towards the hospital. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Whichroom? Whichfloor?"

"Why does it matter?" She couldn't take this anymore. She wanted to go home, get some sleep, pray her teachers didn't ask for her homework that day. Not go chasing after Grayson's father in a hospital bed.

"Nevermind, I'llfigureitoutwhenwegetthere." He spoke so fast Artemis could hardly understand him. Still, within minutes they were on top of a roof across from the hospital. KF set her down there and grinned. "Berightback."

"Wally!" She started to object, but found herself yelling at open air. "Ah great! Go ahead and abandon me you speeding idiot! What's so great about this part you won't even tell me about!"

"Youjusthavetoseeitforyourself." He was back within a minute, holding a bag of pretzels and a pair of binoculars. A grin grew on his face. ". ."

"What on earth are you saying?" Her temper couldn't take anymore of his quick speech.

"I'msayingthathe's—"

"Quit talking so fast! You're giving me a headache!"

KF paused. "Ah. Forgot there a moment. Okay, just get ready to see the best thing on Earth okay?"

"Which is…" Her patience thinned more and more by the moment. Best thing on Earth was a very broad term, and she doubted they felt the same on whatever was keeping her from going home and to bed.

He grinned and pointed down to the street. Desperate to get this over with, Artemis looked over the building's edge to the street below. Somehow they made it to the hospital before Gordon's car did, and as soon as it pulled up, Dick Grayson was out of it, running inside. For a kid who had been taped to a chair for half the night, he sure was lively. Confusion grew on Artemis' face. Was that what he wanted her to see? Grayson going to the hospital?

KF tapped her shoulder, a smirk on his face as he handed her the binoculars. "Look over there, where Mr. Wayne is."

She took the binoculars just as he pulled down his goggles. Apparently it had a zoom in function too. She settled it on Wayne's room and saw he was awake. Not very happy either. The determined unpleasant glare on his face reminded her very strongly of Batman. '_Remind me not to get on Wayne's bad side,_' she thought before he started trying to leave his bed again. The nurses of course tried to stop him, and even his butler looked like he was going to insist he stay, but the man could not be detoured. From the neighboring window Artemis could see an orderly coming towards the room.

The orderly was cut off though by a very quick Dick Grayson. He ran into that room and stopped in the doorway. Both he and his father looked at each other for a moment, one very still moment, then the kid ran straight into his arms, holding onto each other for dear life. Their faces filled with relief, a painful joy, and a gratitude they knew they could never thank someone enough for. From this distance, Artemis could almost swear she saw Wayne crying. The kid definitely was.

Warmth filled Artemis as she watched. She saw before her a bond she only had with her mother and remembered clearly again how she felt when she returned to her. She remembered how alone she felt without her mom, and how wonderful it was to have her again. She could only imagine how much worse it was to nearly lose someone entirely, and how wonderful it would feel to get them back. Before her was something more valuable than any price a ransom could pay.

Next to her, KF smiled broadly. Wayne held tight to his boy and wouldn't let go. Grayson didn't want to leave either. Knowing that the other was alive and safe would never be enough between a parent and child, especially after something like this. They had to see each other, feel the other's presence. And once they did, everything would be right in the world.

"Now aren't you glad we stuck around?"

Artemis nodded, a serine smile on her face. Slowly she put the binoculars down, giving the two their privacy. Kid Flash said this was the best part. He was right. After seeing this, she felt her debt was paid, maybe even with interest. Seeing those two together again warmed the heart and gave her more hope than ever before.

"Yeah. It was definitely worth it.

END / Artemis' side.

* * *

><p>AN: Okay, originally I was going to go back and forth between Artemis' side of this and Dick's, but I couldn't find a way to sneak Dick's POV in when Artemis' was just too freaking good! Yes I support WallyXArtemis, but only because the ultimate KF love interest isn't in the series, nor is she a hero. I'm not talking about Jinx. ImpulseXArrowette was really cute in my opinion too ya know. =P

In my opinion, if you combined Artemis, Wally and Robin together, or just made them a separate team, they'd be the ultimate CSI/NCIS group, taking down bad guys so easily it'd make Gibbs jealous. Wally's the science geek who can fight and come up with wacky ideas that save the day, Robin's the experienced hacker, fighter and infiltrator, and Artemis would be an awesome interrogator/tough girl who sees things in a plainer light. You always need someone like that around. The rest of the team… let them chase capes. =P

Dick's side is next, and it's more trauma and humor than adventure. Also gonna have more Bruce dialog. I kept what they said to each other a secret after all. *evil grin*


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** Though Batman and his kids are made of awesome, I do not own them. If you find the real Tim Drake though, send him my way! =D

A continuation/ other side of Hero's Debt. The first chapter explain's the title, this is just the Bat-family's side of things. So yeah, Bruce, Dick, some Alfred and some Gordon. No Slash, just warm family fuzzies at the end.

* * *

><p>Hero's Debt<p>

Bat-Fam's Side

Bruce heard the screech of tires, catching his attention without any difficulty. The van door slammed open instantly and guns started firing. Bruce Wayne couldn't move fast enough to avoid being shot, but he did try to dodge. He managed to avoid being shot in vital unguarded locations, but his vest took three shots and a bullet made it through his left thigh.

The shooting lasted no more than ninety seconds, then a second tire screech filled the air. He gripped his leg to stop the bleeding, then looked around to see everyone else's conditions. Alfred was on the ground, unharmed. A few students, teachers, parents and bystanders were hit as well, but not severely wounded. He was the shooting's target then. No one else was shot through the chest. Someone either wanted him dead or out of the way, depending on whether they knew about the Kevlar vest he always wore.

"Call an ambulance!" He heard Commissioner Gordon shout to his junior officer in the squad car. Gordon was at Bruce's side within seconds, just as Alfred managed to get to his feet to help him. He made a show of being in pain, but it was a familiar feeling. He'd been shot so many times before this didn't shock him in the slightest.

What shocked him more was that only Alfred and Gordon had run to him. "Where's Dick?"

Alfred blinked then looked around expectantly. Alarms were sounding in his head. Gordon didn't look up to check but ripped off Wayne's tie to use it to stop the bleeding. "We'll find him in a minute. Right now you need medical attention. Where's the school nurse?"

"I'll get him." Barbra darted out from behind her father into the school. The patrolman joined Gordon a second later, a medical kit in his hands.

'_No,_' he thought, '_something is wrong._' The SUV stopped directly between Bruce's car and the coffee shop Dick would visit on occasion while waiting to be picked up. Dick wasn't there. He nearly shouted at the officer, demanding answers. "Why aren't you going after the van?"

"I called it in," the patrolman started, unsure himself. "Montoya said she was in route."

"You should have gone after them!" Whoever organized the shooting did something to Dick. He was sure of it. He had to go after the van! Now!

"Wayne calm down!" Gordon shoved Bruce back to the ground, securing the makeshift bandages best he could. "You'll lose your—"

"I don't care about my damn leg!" Fury ranged inside him, fueled by his panic. Dick wasn't there. The van was between them. They aimed at his chest. Nothing was coincidence. "You need to—"

"Master Bruce! Nothing will be solved if you do not receive medical treatment!" Alfred's sharp retort stopped Bruce short, knocking a little sense back into his panicking mind. The officers were shocked to see Alfred's glare, and probably even more surprised he shut Bruce up. "I will find Master Richard. You focus on your leg, and take all medical advice given to you. These men are just trying to do their jobs."

Bruce bit back every objection he had left, knowing he was in no condition to follow. It still didn't rid him of his worry over his ward—his son. "Right Alfred. Of course. Please find Dick."

It was almost a pleading sob, a fleeting hope, that the one person he'd sacrifice everything for was somehow safe nearby in the coffee shop. If by some miracle this was a coincidence, Alfred would reassure him in a few minutes.

"Naturally." With that, Alfred darted towards the coffee shop just as Barbra and the school nurse came out of the building. As the nurse looked over his wound, Bruce secretly smoldered, watching Alfred from afar to see if that fleeting hope could be encouraged.

Instead what he witnessed made his heart drop and a piece of the lonely darkness within him swelled rapidly. Alfred found Dick's cell phone on the ground. He was talking to Artemis who was shell shocked from being next to the SUV during the whole event. From their body language, Bruce knew his suspicions were true.

Dick wasn't where he was supposed to be. He was gone, taken during the shooting.

* * *

><p>"I saw him go into the coffee shop," Artemis started, her eyes towards the floor. Bruce could tell she didn't want to relive this event a hundred times that day, but she would if it meant she could help. He listened to her as calmly as he could, rationalizing to himself over and over again why he couldn't blame the girl for doing nothing to save Dick. She didn't have any of her gear on her. She was in her civilian identity. She was on foot. There were several men with semi-automatics. She didn't have the resources he had.<p>

Each rationalization eased his anger from her, but not at the kidnappers. They shot him to keep him in one place, to make sure he paid the ransom, whatever it might be. Bruce Wayne had a tendency to disappear for a few hours whenever his ward was in danger. Being publicly shot condemned him to a hospital with police protection. This was torture.

All he could do was listen. Listen, wait, and pay the ransom. So that's what he did. He listened as Artemis recounted what happened on the other side of the van. Three men, chloroform, no plates and make taken off. Men were covered, gloves and ski-masks. They said nothing, just grabbed Dick. The attack and abduction occurred all within ninety seconds. It was a two sided attack.

Bruce took a deep breath, trying to calm himself once again. Part of him prayed the person he suspected wasn't the actual kidnapper, but the other part of him knew it had to be him. Turning on Bruce completely and kidnapping Dick, it had to be him. His insanity had reached a new low.

As Artemis finished her story, Bruce thought of how Dick would be taking this. Not well. If it was him, Dick would be petrified. This was worse than any of his other kidnappings. Far worse. Past trauma because of his Robin identity and Batman couldn't come after him. If he did manage to make it out of this, he'd need time and therapy to recover. May even have to take a break from being Robin. Dick would hate that. Robin was therapy for him in a way. But if it was him…

Shortly after Artemis finished, Bruce nodded and tried to leave his hospital bed. "Thank you miss. If you hadn't been there to see it all, we probably wouldn't have had a chance to help him. Now if you'll all excuse me."

"I don't think so Mr. Wayne." The doctor shoved the larger man back into his bed as an officer escorted Artemis out the door. Bruce gave the doctor a glare, but it didn't stop him from keeping him there. "That shot nearly hit an artery. You need to stay off that leg for two weeks at the minimum."

"He doesn't have two weeks," Bruce growled, batting the man's hand away. Alfred was talking to the commissioner in the hallway. If he could sneak past those two, nothing could stop him from finding Dick.

"Let the police handle it. It's their job after all."

"Are you out of your mind?" Bruce's temper was finally getting the better of him as he pushed himself up. He had to get out of there. He had to find Dick. He had to make the kidnappers pay for what they were putting him through. He had to! "They let the van slip by them! He's with some psychopath with guns! They'll probably kill him once they have their money! I can't stay here! I have to find him!"

"What you have to do, Mr. Wayne," the doctor firmly stated, shoving Bruce back to the bed, "is lie down, stay off that leg, and recover for when they find your son. And they will find him."

"Before or after he's shot!" His voice echoed through the building, rage forcing him nearly to his feet. He had to get up. He had to get out there. He had to—

"Orderlies, restrain him!" Before Bruce could react, two orderlies darted into the room and tackled him to his bed. Behind them, he could spot a surprised Gordon and Alfred. They must have heard his shouting, and neither could believe his desperate voice or raging movements. The orderlies were surprised to a point at Bruce's strength as he fought against them, shouting for them to let him go. He had to get out of there. He had to save Dick! He couldn't lose his family again. He couldn't—

The doctor finally managed to jab a needle into Bruce's skin. A sedative. A fast acting one at that. Powerful even. Bruce's thoughts became a tangled mess as the drug worked its magic. He could almost name it, but it wasn't important. What was important was Dick. He was out there with one of his worst nightmares, and now Batman couldn't save him. Bruce couldn't keep his promise to protect him.

As his mind drifted into unconsciousness, he remembered the last time those two were alone together. Dick was Robin then. Robin was nearly broken, beaten within an inch of his life. Batman had to watch it happen. It hurt them. It hurt them both so badly, he wasn't sure if either of them would recover. But they had, somehow. They were there for each other. But now…

'_I'm sorry. I'm so sorry Dick._'

* * *

><p>Dick tried not to groan when he woke. He kept his eyes shut. Gather as much information as possible while they thought he was helpless, that was training for him. If he could figure out where he was and who grabbed him this time, he might even be able to make it out on his own. It was a big might, but Dick Grayson was an acrobat from the circus after all, not a rich playboy.<p>

He saved himself a smile for when the tape on his mouth wasn't there. Because of his past, he could get away with more than Bruce. A circus brat was still a circus brat, riches or no. He could be sneaky, find a way to escape without any help if he had to, maybe even take down a few morons before running to the cops. That was if he could get his bindings to budge.

His hands were duct taped together, skin to skin. That wasn't going to help. No give and then they came off, it would hurt. Same with the piece on his mouth. The maniac behind this really was a jerk. His legs weren't taped together, but separately to the legs of the chair. An old wooden dining chair if he was right. Easy to break, but hard to tip over if your legs were stuck to it. No give anywhere.

'_Great,_' Dick groaned inside. '_The only smart thing they did was tying me up. Just wait until Batman gets his hands on them. Then they'll be sorry._'

"Think the brat's waking up?" Dick recognized the voice, just a little. Must have taken him down before. Who with? '_Ah, a Penguin guy_.'

"He's been out for nearly five hours."

Five hours? '_Must not have had enough sleep last night,_' Dick rationed quickly. Long nights and longer days did that to people. This guy he took down with Riddler.

"Doesn't matter to me. The longer he sleeps, the easier our job will be."

Privately Dick had to agree. If he was asleep until Batman showed up, he wouldn't have to hear all these morons chatter. This guy had worked for Black Mask. A low level thankfully. Black Mask had a large range of thugs, and this one wasn't normally a killer.

"Think the Bat'll come?" He could hear this one pacing nervously. Also a Riddler thug. So far so good. None of them were the killing type.

'_Ha! Of course he'll come! Alfred and Gordon combined couldn't keep him away!_' Dick really had to fight back a smile at that thought. '_Superman can't stop him when he's this mad._'

That's when he heard it. The one sound that ended all thoughts of a peaceful kidnapping. The sound of a coin being flipped into the air and being caught again. Over and over again. Every drop of color left Dick's face in an instant and he couldn't keep his eyes closed a second longer. He'd see it in his head if he tried. He'd see it all again in his head.

Instead he stared openly at the ground in front of him, praying deep inside that it was someone else. '_Please, please! Please be someone else! Anyone else! Killer Crock! Killer Moth! Calendar Man! Penguin! Riddler! Anyone else!_'

"If he does show up," the dreaded voice started, "we'll be ready for him."

Panic tried to take control of Dick's mind as the one person he'd hoped he'd ever have to face again circled from behind him to his front. He saw the man's shoes but willed himself not to see anything more than that. The coin kept turning in the air. Dick slowly, fearfully, grimacing, closed his eyes again, taking hold of his breathing. Last thing he needed was to have a panic attack in front of Two-face.

* * *

><p>There were ten thugs. Over half of them Robin took down before, and they weren't killers. They worked with Penguin, Riddler, Black Mask, even Zeus and Tut, before working with Two-face. The ones he didn't know looked like ex-military, tough men with calices from using guns over and over again. They had to be the ones who did the shooting earlier. Dick had heard the guns, seen them briefly, but was a bit busy being kidnapped during the event. He only prayed Bruce, Alfred, Barbra and everyone else was alright.<p>

'_Bruce will be fine,_' he thought to comfort himself. '_And he'll never let Alfred get hurt, so he's fine too. Babs was with her dad so she's good. Everyone's fine. They have to be._'

These thoughts pushed away the guilt accompanying the realization he had an hour ago. The shooting was a distraction. Dick's kidnapping was the real crime. He was being held for ransom, but to be caught there had to be senseless violence. In a twisted way, the shooting was his fault.

'_No one better be hurt,_' he thought in desperation. '_No one._'

For probably the twentieth time Dick fought against his bonds. The thug watching him at that moment only rolled his eyes as he cleaned his gun. Two-face was in back, flipping his coin while watching a TV. Other thugs paced the room or took peaks outside to make sure things were quiet. None of them suspected that growing sweat and frequent struggling would make the duct tape weaken.

He had plenty of sweat thanks to Two-face. Dick wasn't ready to face him again. Every time Two-face reared his head, Batman sent Robin either home or on a mission with his friends. Thanks to the team being around, he only heard about Two-face's plans after everything was done. When he was sent home without an explanation, his imagination wandered to worse case scenarios. Batman wasn't the only one who worried for other people's safety. Robin just hid it with a smile, or shared it with a hug.

Worry started to play with Dick's mind as he worked and twisted his wrists. It was long past nightfall. Batman may have waited until the cover of night to save him, but usually he found Dick within four hours. It was seven. Nearly eleven at night, and still no sign of his mentor.

'_What's keeping him?_' Part of Dick wanted to panic. He wanted to cause a huge ruckus, scream and shout, expose their location, get out of there. The only reason he hadn't already was his training and experience. Oh and of course the duct tape. How could he forget that?

Dick knew if he tried to escape and failed, his life would depend on a coin toss. He knew he might be able to free his hands in time, but his legs would take longer than he had. All he could really do was speed his release in the near future. He'd take care of his hands and mouth while Batman fought the goons off, then when everyone was still busy, he'd release his own legs so he could get out of the way. Maybe even help. That was a big maybe. Sometimes it was best to just let Batman fight and just make sure no tricks came up from behind him.

"And just what do you think you're doing?"

Dick froze, his heart stopping in his chest. Two-face was behind him, coldly staring at his nearly free hands. Before he could think about it, Dick broke the tape apart, jerking forward for a desperate escape. Naturally it failed and he toppled over to his hands and knees. In that one desperate instant he forgot about his legs. The chair's back hit his head and he knew he had bruises on his knees.

The thugs around him laughed before one of them grabbed him by his collar and the back of the chair, pulling him upright. Blindly Dick tried to shove the man's hands away from him, blood pounding in his ears. All this did was make the men laugh even more. Midst his furious struggling, another thug helped grab his wrists and shove them together behind the chair, forcing a fresh wrap of duct tape on them. Dick continued to fight uselessly, not listening to the logical part of his brain in the slightest.

Two-face did nothing, merely watched bemused. Once Dick was secured (though still struggling against his bonds), he walked around to face the boy head on. Dick heard the coin fling into the air and he stopped, feeling colder than before. His fate…

The slap of the coin on Two-face's wrists sounded across the room. He tried not to look at the man but felt his hand grip his jaw. Dick was forced to look straight into the eyes of his worst tormentor, and he couldn't help but to be scared. His fate was decided by a coin toss. That was all. Slowly the man brought the coin up.

Heads. Good heads.

"You're a lucky boy." Two-face shook Dick's head side to side a little, then slapped his face. "Don't try that again. Once the ransom's been paid, your luck will be tested again."

'_Batman,_' he prayed silently, terror eating away at his insides, '_please hurry!_'

* * *

><p>It was late, later than Dick was used to staying up and sitting still. Maybe one a.m. Anywhere from two to four the dynamic duo would end their patrols for the night. Running from rooftop to rooftop kept him awake that late, but the past 24 hours weren't like the ones before. Exhaustion from the terrors of the day finally caught up to him, numbing him to his fears and increasing his annoyance as he closed his eyes every few seconds.<p>

"Think he'll really pay up?" A thug overlooked Dick nodding off in his chair toward their boss.

Two-face flipped his coin without blinking an eye. "Of course he will. Wayne's a sentimental fool. He'll do anything to keep his family together. Would have snatched the Butler too if he wasn't so damn close to the man all the time."

Dick tried not to glare at Two-face or the others. He really had no energy to be scared anymore. '_Just wait,_' he kept thinking, '_just wait. He'll be here. Batman will be here soon._'

A loud crash jolted him out of his groggy trance. The light high above him was taken out, literally, by an arrow, causing the glass to rain down on them. A second later smoke spewed out of it, filling the room. The thugs coughed, raising their guns to fire at random if they had to. "What was that?"

The smoke swirled around rapidly and men called out as their stomachs where pummeled briefly. Dick tried to figure out which way Batman was coming from, but briefly wondered why he brought in an archer. That was when he heard Artemis' voice.

"Hold still," she muttered in his ear. "We're going to get you out of here."

'_What the…_' He jerked in surprise. That wasn't Batman, and she wouldn't be first on the list of archers to call for help either. '_What are you doing here?_'

As she started working on his wrists, a new light came on. Thanks to the person in the smoke, everyone's vision was clear enough to see Artemis behind Dick, trying to free him. Dick heard the double barrel gun's safety click off. His coin was still going. "Not another move girl, or you'll be breathing through your back."

Dick could feel her whip around behind him to face the lunatic. "Try it," she growled.

"Artemis!"

Dick jerked to his best friend's voice just a second before the two shots sounded. '_Wally?_'

Before impact could be made, Dick felt his chair lift off the ground and dart to the side of the room, barely out of the direct line of fire of the thug's guns. He looked around wildly at his two teammates, very confused and becoming worried. '_What are you two doing here? Where's Batman?_' was all he wanted to ask them, but his mouth remained sealed.

Kid Flash huffed out in exhaustion. Carrying two people and a chair at that speed couldn't have been easy. "You okay?"

Dick made a few angry noises to get their attention as Artemis nodded. These reluctant lovebirds should show their concern after a crisis. Wally looked back to Dick, realizing his mouth was covered. "Oh."

Without a thought KF ripped off Dick's gag, and the boy winced in pain. "Gah, a little less painful would have been nice."

"That's gratitude for ya."

Dick knew KF was sizing him up, and as much as he'd like to share his ID to him, Batman's orders were to protect both of them and their friends. He couldn't even joke with them as Dick Grayson.

"Free my hands and I'll take care of the rest," Dick started, trying to keep his voice level. He had to act brave at the very least, but it was harder than it looked. Artemis was giving him concerned, yet slightly knowing looks. She'd seen him a little weak before and how he would put up a front, so he knew she'd give him more leeway. KF on the other hand, he didn't know Dick at all. Only Robin. That kinda sucked.

As Artemis worked on his wrists, Dick looked around wildly, hoping beyond hope for a sign of real safety. "Where's Batman?"

"Couldn't make it."

Dick tried not to show how truly horrified he felt at KF's quick statement. He suddenly felt hollow, abandoned. It was only the pain from having duct tape torn off his wrists that brought him back to reality. He rubbed them as he tried to organize his thoughts. "Couldn't make it? How couldn't he—"

"Talk later, escape now." Thugs were getting back on their feet, their guns poised to shoot at them all. Capes arriving made the hostage a liability, so not even a coin toss could save Dick now. "There's an exit about twenty feet to your right. Take it. Your dad's worried about you."

At Artemis' last statement, Dick felt a little hope. He looked up to her, trying to suppress his fears and anxieties, then realized he had to get out of there for his answers. He choked back his horrible whelming feelings and started working on his legs. '_There's a good explanation for this,_' he thought quickly. '_Bruce didn't abandon me. Maybe the shooting?_'

KF was off like a rocket, punching every man in the room he could find while stealing their guns to dismantle them. Artemis shot her arrows around the room, taking out artillery and pinning what thugs weren't KOed. Rapidly Dick ripped off the tape from his legs, then dived behind some crates so Artemis could physically join the fight. With no one to worry about, it'd be easier for both young heroes to take down these morons.

Dick looked around the crates to watch, seeing if their was an opportunity to help them out. Most of all, he looked for Two-face. He could be slippery, but he wouldn't think these kids were a threat. If given the opportunity, he'd take them down.

That's when he saw him. Two-face, during the commotion managed to slip behind a wall of crates to reload his gun. The double barrel made it jam quite often. Once it was reloaded, he got up to rejoin the fight. Judging from the bolt on the ground and the blood coming from Two-face's shoulder, Dick guessed who his first target would be.

Quickly Dick leapt forward, grabbing the chair he escaped from and darted towards Two-face. He was nearly behind Artemis and she hadn't noticed. Kid Flash barely did, just as he was about to fire. "Artemis!"

He didn't hesitate. Dick swung the chair high over his head then crashed it down onto Two-face's back. The man fell forward, unconscious just as Artemis turned around to defend herself.

Dick couldn't hide his rage anymore. He hated Two-face. He hated him for all the things he'd done. To him. To Bruce. To Gotham in general. Mostly it was personal, he knew that, but he really hated him. He scared Dick, gave him nightmares, beaten him near to death, tortured him in front of those he cared about, hurt people just for being at the school, just to take him for ransom! He was even going to hurt his friends. He wanted nothing more than to hurt this psychotic killer until he couldn't breathe anymore. He really wanted him gone.

But something held him back. Maybe it was the oath he made as a kid to seek justice, not vengeance. Maybe it was his habit to just knock out the bad guys, not needlessly beat them to a pulp. Maybe it was deeper, back to when he saw his parents lying on the circus floor, all their warmth leaving them. Whatever it was, it stopped him, held back his rage, his terror.

Instead he dropped what was left of his chair, straightened himself and tried to control his breathing. He looked over to Artemis and Wally, making sure they were okay. They were fine. Slowly he forced a shaky smile.

"You have no idea how long I've wanted to do that."

Kid Flash stared at him, flabbergasted. "Wow, that was cool."

"Yeah…" Artemis breathed out. Really, their faces were priceless.

Almost in a trance, Dick stepped away from Two-face, looking around to the walls that held him prisoner for nearly twelve hours. Exhaustion and normal human functions were starting to work again, yet he felt light headed, as if a weight was suddenly gone from him. He gripped his head lightly as his teammates tried to figure out what to do next. Clean up is what Batman would have called it. Just tying up the bad guys so the cops could handle the rest.

Dick could hardly understand what they were saying for a moment, then a stray thought brought him back to reality. 'What am I going to tell the cops?'

"Um… I know this is a little late in the game and all that," Dick started, getting their attention like a regular kid would, "but who are you? Just so I know what to tell reporters and stuff."

KF and Artemis looked at each other blankly for a moment, taking a break from duct taping some baddies together. "Um…"

Kid Flash got to his feet and gave Dick an incredulous glare, somewhat disbelieving his question. He tapped his chest and immediately was in his regular colors. Dick faked surprise. "Oh! Flash Kid!"

"Kid Flash!" As much as Dick didn't want to get on Wally's bad side, he had to pretend he didn't know a lot.

"Whatever. Close enough. But don't you live in Keystone?"

"Central."

"Central what?" Now he was just teasing.

KF gave him an irked glare, then turned to Artemis. "We came here to save _this_?"

"Give him a break will ya?" Artemis finished binding off the last guy and made her way to Two-face near their feet.

"And who are you? Green Arrow the second?" Dick tried to keep it up. "Or a Green Speedy? I know, Arrowette!"

"My name isn't important," Artemis tried to brush off.

"She's Artemis!" KF objected loudly. His defensive glare nearly brought a smile to Dick's face.

"Goddess of the hunt, okay. She looks like one too." He tried to smile but he still felt shaky. Where was Batman anyway?

Artemis couldn't help but to smile, just as much as Wally couldn't help but to glare darkly. Making his best friend hate his everyday persona really hurt Dick inside, but Bruce wouldn't have it any other way. Besides, making cracks made him feel a little more confident. Confident enough to stay standing at the very least.

"Cute. Really cute," she started, "but I don't think either of us where here tonight." She gave Wally a knowing look. They were a covert team after all. If they were suddenly seen outside their regular territories, people would notice. The media might even get wind of their team, alert the rest of the super villain community, and get them all killed.

"Yeah, why are you two in Gotham anyway? And why me? Shouldn't it be Batman saving me?" '_Please come up with a good cover story. I don't feel like adlibbing tonight._'

"Batman did save you," Artemis persisted, making KF give her a double take. "Him and Green Arrow. He was in town to visit… Robin. He's a friendly enough kid. Got it?"

Dick gave them confused looks, but inside he was glad Artemis was a fair liar. "Ooookaaaaay… I guess… but why are you two—"

Sirens blared outside the building, attracting each of their attentions. Dick kept his eyes on the windows to give the others time to run off. Sure enough, within a few seconds he heard a quick goodbye and felt the wind rush past him. He did a slight jerk around in case they were watching him still, then smirked to himself.

"Thanks guys," he whispered to himself, then looked down to Two-face, starting to wake up. Glaring, Dick kicked his face then gut for good measure. The maniac blacked out again, making the teen smirk, pleased.

* * *

><p>"Richard!" Gordon flew to Dick's side, looking him over to make sure he was in one piece.<p>

"I'm okay," he told the commissioner quickly. He had a swelled cheek, bruised knees, raw wrists and his mouth smarted from the duct tape, but over all he was fine. Most of the damage was psychological, he was sure.

Course, hitting Two-face a few times helped fix that.

"I'm… I'm just shaken, that's all."

Still, Gordon looked him over as a concerned parent or uncle would. "Who wouldn't be. Barbra was between yelling and tears when she heard about this. And Bruce Wayne—"

"Where's Bruce?" he asked desperately. He looked around and over the cops, the vans and bad guys to see him. Yet his face was no where to be seen. Where was he?

"First I need you to calm down and tell me what happened." Dick jerked his gazed into the older man's. He was about to tell Dick why Bruce wasn't there, why Batman hadn't saved him, and in an instant decided against it.

"What happened? What happened to Bruce?" Fear choked in Dick's throat. He had to know! He had to know where he was and why he didn't come for him. He had to know now!

"He's fine. Safe. I'll take you straight to him in a few minutes. But first you have to tell me what happened here. Who saved you? How did you escape?" Gordon tried to use soothing tones to get Dick to calm down and talk to him, so Dick took a breath to humor him. The faster he got through this, the quicker he got his answers.

"Batman and Green Arrow. GA shot out a light and Batman got me out of the way. There was a fight and then it stopped. Someone took off the tape, I think it was Batman, 'cause Green Arrow was taping up bad guys." He gave vague descriptions, shaking his head in confusion. Though he could have tried a play by play, it was late and he was shaken from the ordeal. An accurate story would have to wait until the following day, and anyone who thought otherwise didn't know victims.

A medic came over to them, wrapping a blanket around Dick's shoulders before starting first aid, mostly on his wrists. The commissioner nodded, though a little confused. "Green Arrow? From Star City?"

"Looked it. It was kinda dark." Dick let the medic work on his wrists, then with pleading eyes asked Gordon again, "Where's Bruce?"

Gordon said nothing for a moment, then sighed. "You two are so much alike. The only thing he's thought about since the shooting was you."

Hearing that lifted Dick's heart a smidge. Then came a fresh wave of worry. The shooting…

"Wayne was shot, four times." Dick's eyes grew wide, horror coming to his face. Quickly Gordon continued. "Three times in the chest, and once in the thigh. Did you know he wore a Kevlar vest?"

Dick nodded numbly. Bruce was paranoid, and had every right to be. His parents were shot in front of him. Wearing a Kevlar vest under his clothes would almost be a natural reaction.

"It saved his life. The bullet in his leg nearly hit a main artery. He's at the hospital, and if it weren't for the staff sedating him, he'd have run out of his bed to go find you. He almost didn't go to the hospital to begin with. That Alfred practically forced him to go into the ambulance."

Shot. Sedated. "So he's alright? His leg's going to be okay? He's alive?"

"Very much alive. And his leg'll be fine if he stays off it for a few weeks."

Dick gripped his mouth and choked back his erratic breathing. He tried his hardest not to cry. Not then, not there. Bruce was alive. He wanted to go after him, but others wouldn't let him. Did he call Artemis and Wally? No, Bruce would have called Clark, maybe Black Canary. That is, if he had the chance. Hospitals, surgery, police, questioning, he probably didn't have a moment alone before they put him under.

No, Artemis must have been there, seen what happened. Her bus stop and his coffee shop were across the street from each other, in perfect view of everything. She must have called Wally. Good choice. Wally's experience with forensics would help track Dick down. Between the two of them, they could find him. He knew what he was doing and she knew Gotham. That had to be what happened.

Gordon placed a hand on Dick's shoulder, knowing he was holding back tears. The kid was very expressive, but he did his best to act grown up. All teenagers did. He took in a deep breath before speaking again.

"Was anyone else… hurt… during the shooting?"

Gordon debated lying but knew the kid would find out soon enough. "Several others were shot, but nothing near as lethal as what Mr. Wayne got. We're pretty sure they were planning on killing him."

"They didn't say—" Dick stopped short, holding back tears with all his might. "They didn't say he was dead. They said Bruce would pay the ransom because he's a sentimental fool. I… I think they knew about the vest."

Gordon nodded slowly, watching the kid battling his tears. He looked around to the other officers, then to the medic. He'd finished bandaging Dick's wrists, he just needed to check the kid out. But the kid needed something else.

"So everyone else is okay? No one's dead?"

"Not a soul." He placed a hand on the kid's back and started guiding him to his car. "Come on. I'll take you to him." The medic was about to object, but a quick pleading look from Gordon, plus watching Dick light up a little as they walked, silenced all objections about protocol. They were going to a hospital in the end.

* * *

><p>Bruce groaned awake at 1:43 a.m. It was the most sleep he'd had in weeks. One of these days those sedatives would have to stop working on him. Quickly his mind reviewed that happened before he passed out. Being shot. Dick missing. Artemis reporting. Orderlies pinning him down.<p>

Dick.

His eyes jolted to perfect clarity. There was only one thing he had to do. Find Dick and bring him home. He glanced to either side of him, spotting Alfred reading a book in a chair next to him, a cell phone settled on his knee. For some reason he seemed calm, and it irritated Bruce to no end. Dick was missing and Alfred was reading a book.

They weren't alone in the room. There was a nurse, a visiting doctor, and a large policeman. Apparently Bruce's attempts to leave the building before, plus getting shot, warranted him needing extra protection. This was not going to go over well.

Slowly Bruce pushed himself into a sitting position, immediately getting Alfred's attention. "I'd advise you lay back down Master Bruce. It would do you and Master Richard little good if your wounds reopened."

Alfred's comment did exactly what it meant to do: inform everyone else in the room he was awake and ready to bolt again.

"It hardly does him any favors just laying here either Alfred." He kept his growl to a minimum since he was already mentally in Batman mode.

"Don't worry Mr. Wayne," the officer started, waking up from his nap. "The Gotham PD is working it's hardest to find your boy."

"That's what you always say," Bruce started, loosely shaking out his legs so he could use them in a minute. "And how many kidnapped kids have you managed to return to their parents?"

"We're doing the best we can," the officer bit back, obviously offended. Truth be told, it was mostly Batman, Robin and Gordon who saved kidnapped kids and hostages. But who was going to save Robin if Batman was stuck in a hospital bed?

"Have they even made a ransom demand? Do you know who took him?" It was impossible for Bruce to hide his anger. The only thing he could control was how violent it would get.

"They do in fact. And they have."

Bruce looked at Alfred as he put away his book, leaving the cell phone in it to keep his place. Calmly Alfred got to his feet and proceeded to tuck the bottom half of Bruce's bed in, trapping him in the covers. "It appears Two-face left a note in the get-a-way vehicle asking for 2.2 million non-sequential bills."

"Two-face!" Bruce didn't bother to hide the panic in his voice. Fears were confirmed. He had to get out of there. He had to get to Dick! Again he struggled with his sheets. Why did Alfred keep him there?

"The time for the delivery of the money is roughly the same time you were shot and Master Richard was taken, at the exact same location."

"If they want money, they can have it!" Bruce shoved himself out from under the covers quicker than anyone could stop him. Angry determination grew on his face. He was going to get Dick back. In one piece. Alive, healthy, and if he could manage it, smiling. He just had to go after him. He had to!

"Mr. Wayne, calm down!" The nurse tried to clamber to his side to stop him, but Bruce couldn't be detoured.

"I'm not leaving Dick in the hands of a psychopath!"

"Oh great. Simon! Get in here!"

Everyone in the room was trying to get Bruce back into his bed as he managed to put his feet on solid ground. His leg hurt, fine. He'd just lock it away in one corner of his mind. He only had a few seconds before the orderly was there so he had to take out the cop quickly, dodge another syringe, and run for the door before—

The door opened with a snap, taking everyone back. Bruce could almost not believe his eyes. There in the doorway was Dick Grayson. Worn out, a little banged up with bandages on his wrists, and messy clothes proving he fought as best he could as an ordinary teenager. His eyes said it all. Everything from fear, to agony, to hope, to relief danced in those blue eyes of his. Bruce could only guess later something similar played in his.

They only took that second to see how the other faired, then Bruce opened his arms gladly as Dick ran to him, tears forcing their way out. They sunk to the floor, holding on to each other as if nothing else mattered. Tears streamed down Dick's face as he sputtered off things incoherently. Something about being scared, being sorry, Two-face, and many other things he could hardly make out. Bruce just held him tightly, rubbing his back a bit and saying it was alright, everything was fine now and not to worry. Holding each other, they felt their individual darkness leave and a warmth take its place. Everything was alright now. Everything.

The others in the room watched awkwardly for a moment or two, then the officer muttered something about getting coffee. The doctor followed him out, since the only reason they were there was to keep Bruce from running after Dick again. The nurse decided to busy herself with tasks around the room. Only Alfred smiled as he watched them.

After a few minutes, enough to reassure each other of their existence, Bruce shook his head, baffled. "I don't understand." He eased his grip on Dick so they could look each other in the eye. "How did you… who helped you… how are you here? I thought…"

"Batman and Green Arrow saved me." Saying 'Batman saved me' or 'Robin saved me' was code between them for I'll explain later, but it only worked when they referred to themselves individually. Dick look a little sheepish when he added, "I really should call Wally later. He's probably worried about me."

'_Ah._' Bruce remembered Artemis telling him what she saw once more. '_She must have called Wally and they managed to solve this together. I'll have to congratulate them on their case later._'

He pulled Dick back in but not as tightly as before, then looked up to Alfred who held a controlled smile on his face. Bruce knew that look. "You knew."

"Both Batman and Commissioner Gordon called, informing me of Master Richard's condition. And speaking of conditions, I believe yours will worsen if you two stay on the floor like this."

Dick gasped, realizing what they were doing, and looked at Bruce's leg. "That's right! You were shot!"

"And sedated." The annoyed tone in his voice spoke volumes to the young man. Dick bit back a short laugh. "Not happy about that."

"Sir, it was necessary considering your condition and circumstances." Alfred was trying to be patient, but it _was_ late. "Now, if you would return to your bed, I can assure the hospital staff neither of you will be running around on rooftops and be on my way to rest."

Both boys bit back laughs, but obediently stood up, Bruce favoring one leg over the other. Dick helped him get in, making the nurse smile for a bit, then clambered in himself. Bruce and Alfred bit back loving chuckles as Dick grinned impishly at the shocked nurse. Gordon had finally made it to the hospital room, and he too had a smile growing on his face.

"I trust he'll be safe here for the night?" Gordon asked playfully.

Bruce smiled calmly as Dick threw off his shoes and nestled down next to him. Alfred pulled a spare blanket over the boy, also smiling gently.

"Of course. Thank you commissioner."

With that, the Commissioner nodded and led the nurse out of the room. Alfred drew the curtains closed before picking up his things and turning out the lights. A soft glow came from the monitors in the room as the door closed behind him. Dick was already falling asleep.

Bruce watched him drift off, not really thinking much about anything. Dick was right there next to him, safe and sleeping soundly. Neither one of them were likely to have nightmares that night, now they were together again.

Two-face didn't do too much damage it appeared. Roughed him a bit, scared him some, but it looked like Dick did something that made up for it. He seemed almost at peace. Almost. He wouldn't have climbed into Bruce's bed like he used to when he was little if it weren't for a good reason.

'A little extra security never hurt anyone,' Bruce thought as he watched his little robin. He rubbed Dick's hair affectionately, then slowly drifted off to sleep himself. Sedatives didn't give him the real rest he needed. Not having to worry for a few hours did. And with Dick there, what was there to worry about?

END / Bat-Fam

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><p>AN: I think it's clear. I like to do two things: torture people to death, and give out warm fuzzies. Hope you loved the daddybats moments! I adored them. 3

I'm debating doing an epilogue where Bats congratulates Artemis and Wally for their work in Gotham, thank them for working the case, then watch Robin hide his embarrassment as he lied to them about where they were. Just can't figure out a case yet that they could fabricate requiring absolute radio silence. It'd be a very short bit anyway.

Hoped you liked it! First chapter is all Wally/Artemis and the second is all Bat-Fam. Had to push to get the bat-fam side done right. Please review. They make me giddy.


	3. Epilogue

**Disclaimer:** Sadly, all i own is my imagination. The people here didn't come from me, but the people at DC comics. I just love their stories

The votes are in! Here's your epilogue! Isn't much, but originally I wasn't going to write one. Tell me how you like it.

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><p>Hero's Debt<p>

Epilogue

"The Doom Patrol was last sighted in Southern Balia," Batman explained to the team. "The exact nature of their investigation wasn't revealed to the League, but a distress beacon sounded off two weeks ago for an hour. First assumptions of the team managing to escape their predicament have recently proven false."

The picture of a ten year old green boy in a purple uniform flashed before them. "Their youngest member, Beast Boy, was found by Aquaman in the Balian sea yesterday, severely wounded."

"Cool. They've got a kid on their team," Kid Flash commented, and was subsequently jabbed in the ribs by Artemis.

Batman continued as if nothing was said. "Your mission is to find out what happened to the rest of the Doom Patrol. Beast Boy is currently recovering in Atlantis, but is unable to speak at the moment."

Batman gave them a detailed plan of entry, giving them strict instructions for when they arrived. Radio silence unless they were under attack, mostly because the Doom Patrol were a group of experts and had vanished. The League was on alert to rescue them and the patrol if needed. Secretly, everyone hoped or believed the kids could take care of it, especially when they found the patrol. Instructions to leave were also in place, should they manage to find and save the patrol, or find information as to their whereabouts. They were not to risk a confrontation with the locals or any of the Doom Patrol's enemies.

After thirty minutes of instruction, Batman sent them on their way. KF and Artemis were nearly to the door then he called them back in. Slightly confused, both teenagers turned back and saw Batman and Robin looking at them. Robin looked a little sheepish but walked towards the exit slowly. He knew what was coming. Batman only said one sentence.

"Good job on the Grayson case."

The two teens blinked in surprise, dumbfounded.

"Um… thanks," KF started, but couldn't say anything more. Batman turned around, heading to the Zeta Tubes to go home. Kid Flash then decided to turn on Robin who joined them towards the ship. "What was that about?"

Robin was trying not to make eye contact. He was actually really embarrassed by it all. "He's praising you two. It's actually the highest praise he gives, really. You really did a great job, saving him that is. It's his way of saying 'thanks'. He's… not really that good at saying it."

Sheepishly Robin gave them a smile. "So, thanks guys. Thanks for taking care of it. We would have, really, but another case kinda kept us away."

"What kind of case?" Artemis asked, curious. What in all the world would keep Batman and Robin away from Two-face and a high profile kidnapping?

"A really hush hush embarrassing one." Robin ran a hand through his hair a few times, obviously not wanting to talk about it. "It kinda put us both out of commission this past week. Saving Grayson wasn't an option, no matter how upset either of us got when we heard about it. When Alf—our friend told us you guys were handling, it really helped out."

Artemis and KF couldn't help but see Robin's nervousness as he talked about this. Awkward and cute in a way, but they couldn't say a word about it. They didn't know Robin was trying to figure out a way to thank them properly for saving his life without revealing his identity. Batman thought long and hard of a way to thank them himself, but it was harder for him to say anything like that than it was for Robin.

"So, thanks. Thanks a million."

KF grinned while Artemis looked down embarrassed and pleased. KF clapped Robin on the shoulder, ready to take the credit. "No problem Rob! What are friends for? Besides, I don't think you'd want to meet this Grayson kid anyway."

Artemis and Robin gave the speedster strained curious looks as he rambled on. "The kid was a bit of a brat. He called me Flash Kid and said I was from Keystone! And he kept asking where Batman was."

"Wally, he wasn't that bad." Artemis stepped in to defend Robin's other persona, much to his pleasure. "Not everyone knows who you are, and he just reversed your name. And wasn't the first Flash from Keystone?"

"You only liked him because he called you a goddess."

"And he saved my life! Broke a chair over Two-face and everything!" Artemis smirked as she looked over to Robin to explain. "Really, that kid was brave. He had the guts to hurt his attackers and even told the cops Batman and Green Arrow saved him for us. I think he could be a hero some day."

"The kid got my name wrong!"

"Everyone gets your name wrong!"

Robin bit back a laugh watching those two bicker. It was always entertaining and the fact they were fighting over his true identity was hysterical! Without them realizing it, Robin darted into the ship and took his seat. Before the bickering love-birds entered, and without even trying to explain it to the others, he burst into uncontrollable laughter. Everyone looked at him oddly until Artemis and KF made it to the ship. The rest heard the argument escalate but didn't understand how the subjects of names and powers came into play. Robin laughed for a little while longer, then pulled it back into a giggle before the ship took off. Their teammates looks of confusion were funny too, but if Robin gave out any more loud laughs, he was certain M'gann would scan his mind to find out what was so funny.

_Stop laughing Robin_. He heard over his intercom. Batman was on the line still. Radio silence would commence once they were over international waters. _They're doing their bests_.

Robin gave one last snicker before calming down, but the grin didn't leave his face. "Roger," he said back lowly so the others couldn't hear. His personal jokes would have to wait until they returned from this mission.

Still, two of his friends arguing over whether his real self was a good guy or not was hysterical.

END

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><p>AN: you wanted an epilogue, here it is! Vague on purpose, really, but I enjoyed it. Batman wouldn't be that good at saying thanks for something like this, but giving his highest praise (really, that and "you did good" are really his ideas of praises) is all he could do in that scenario. Robin laughing at one of their arguments would be in his character too.

No I'm not writing that mission. Don't know enough about Doom Patrol or about "Balia" to do it. Plus, unless there's a lot of character interaction, I'm not really the mission making type here. DC's way better. I prefer doing the in between or after mission scenarios. Writing a fight scene isn't easy for me at all, plus I'm no good thinking like a bad guy. I actually think a lot more like Batman. *looks away*

Hope you enjoyed! I will post more stories after I'm done with them.


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